Georgia Democrats quickly rallied around Vice President Kamala Harris’ decision Tuesday to select Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, praising the former U.S. House member and military veteran as a plainspoken politician who can appeal to middle-of-the-road voters.
Senior Republicans, meanwhile, branded the former high school educator as a liberal provocateur whose rural roots and understated demeanor mask his “dangerous” policies.
Walz is scheduled to appear with Harris in a number of battleground states, starting with a Tuesday rally in Philadelphia, home to Walz’s top Democratic rival for the No. 2 post. Harris picked Walz over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and several other finalists.
The duo was set to headline a rally in Savannah on Friday, though it was postponed as slow-moving Tropical Storm Debby dumps rain on much of South Georgia.
Democrats hope picking Walz, who is white, helps balance a ticket led by Harris, the first Black and South Asian woman to become a major party’s nominee. His Midwest roots also contrast with Harris’ background in liberal California.
Former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, a top Harris ally in Georgia, predicted that Walz will help Democrats break the “red wall” among working-class voters that Republicans have long dominated.
“People want someone who is going to fight for them,” Reed told “Politically Georgia.” “He showed he is a fighter — and he wants to take the fight to Republicans.”
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff said Walz adds to the enthusiasm in Georgia, where President Joe Biden’s decision to quit the campaign three weeks ago has upended the contest. Polls now show a tight race between Harris and former President Donald Trump, who each held rallies at the same Atlanta venue within days of each other.
“Gov. Walz is a very strong choice. He is an accomplished governor, military veteran, and we’re looking forward to bringing him to Georgia,” Ossoff said. “The excitement here in Georgia is palpable, and I believe the vice president will prevail here.”
And state Rep. Esther Panitch, the lone Jewish member of Georgia’s General Assembly, praised Walz as someone who will “stand with Israel and best represent our values.”
“The Harris-Walz ticket will inspire a strong coalition of voters to make their voices heard at the ballot box in November,” she said.
It ends a furious behind-the-scenes press for the job, with some senior Democrats publicly picking sides. Top Georgia Democrats steered clear of the back-and-forth over who Harris should pick, with many expressing confidence in whoever the vice president selected.
Less known than other rivals, Walz gained attention for using cable TV appearances to frame Trump and other Republicans as “weird.” It quickly became a calling card for Democrats to pummel Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, as out of touch.
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Underscoring his low profile, only a handful of senior Georgia Democrats said they knew Walz personally. Among them is state Rep. Saira Draper, D-Atlanta, who said Walz impressed her during their work hashing out policies for the Democratic National Committee.
“He is affable, competent and makes others feel like he’s got things under control,” she said. “He’s an excellent choice and is going to appeal to a broad swath of the American people.”
Analysts cast Walz as a safe pick for Harris, who along with Shapiro also considered U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.
“Gov. Josh Shapiro could have brought a bigger payoff,” said Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, “but Gov. Tim Walz fills the age-old bill for VP nominees: First, do no harm.”
Crystal Bui, a Georgia political operative who was a journalist in Minneapolis between 2019 and 2021, said Walz earned a “fairly positive image” during the COVID-19 pandemic as he held daily press conferences and made himself generally accessible to the media. “He still has an assertive, no-nonsense attitude, but I think his likability factor will be huge and play out well on the campaign trail,” Bui said.
Republicans quickly tried to define Walz in familiar terms. Trump’s campaign said Walz was worse than “dangerously liberal and crooked Kamala Harris.” And it signaled it would pound Walz over the chaos in Minneapolis following the 2020 murder of George Floyd.
Georgia House Majority Leader Chuck Efstration called Walz an “extreme liberal from the Midwest.”
“It should be a warning sign, in my mind, of Democrats,” the Gwinnett County Republican said.
Still, others said Walz could sharpen the campaign’s efforts to reach mainstream voters who feel alienated by both campaigns. Former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, one of Harris’ most prominent GOP backers, said Walz could help sway the sliver of undecided voters up for grabs.
“They still have to make sure they focus on winning the middle. The 10% in the middle is just as important today as it was yesterday,” Duncan said. “But I do think he’ll add a lot to the Middle America profile that Democrats are trying to win.”
